Peruvian tentempié & postre

Tentempié and postre means snack and dessert respectively. Being a big foodie, I'm constantly hungry and hunting for snacks and desserts. I'm the kind that sleep in 16 person dorm to spend more money on munchies. Thankfully, the Peruvians got amazing cuisine. Ceviche, churros, and mazamorra arroz zambito are my favourites.

Ceviche, pronounced seh-bee-chay, is essentially marinated fish often made into a salad with other accompanying ingredients. It's a popular dish along the coast and lakes. The fish are marinated using citrus stuff most likely lemon or lime then paired with baked sweet potato, slightly charred corn (maize), onions, lettuce and a light citrusy sauce. The dish is full of flavour and healthy plus it provides a bit of starch to keep you rolling. It's yummy because of the freshness. The best ceviches are the ones before noon because they use fish caught in the early morning. yum, yum, and more yum.

As a sucker for sweets, I know churros is definitely not from Peru, but how can anyone resist it when walking in the cold?! The slight savoury fried dough sprinkled with sugar paired with a nice thick hot chocolate dip. Hand me one right now and I'll come around later for another as midnight snack, thank you very much. The trick with these is to pick those stalls frying them in front of you, otherwise you might end up with a cold hard crunch wood stick. And, they should only be at the most 1 solus each. 

Lastly, mazamorra arroz zambito. Allen and I were taking the less beaten path in Cusco one evening which led discovery to a dessert shop filled with locals. Out of curiosity and the welcoming locals, we stepped in and got one of whatever everyone was eating. "You haven't tried this? then you must! Get the combination. Oh, and watch your belongings..." Mazamorra is made with a local maize (which makes it super purplie) and apparently cooked with cinnamon, pineapple and sweet potato. Arroz zambito is essentially rice pudding with raisins, pecans and molasses. The combination of the two makes a warm super gooey yet somehow interesting earthy taste.

provided by Allen Chang

Peruano tentempié and postre, gotta try it once!